God of War 2
God of War II is an action-adventure game developed by SCE Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It is the second game in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_of_War_%28series%29 God of War series]. The game was released in North America on March 13, 2007, Europe on April 27, 2007, Australia on May 3, 2007, and in Japan on October 25, 2007. Loosely based on Greek mythology, God of War II is the fifth chapter in the series, and forms part of a saga, with vengeance as a central theme. The game focuses on protagonist Kratos, who has become the new god of War after his defeat of the Olympian god Ares. Betrayed by Zeus due to his actions, Kratos - now aided by the Titan Gaia - attempts to avert his betrayal by by seeking out The Sisters of Fate and changing his destiny. At the time of its release, God of War II received critical acclaim from critics and is regarded as the swan song of the PlayStation 2 era. It was re-released under Sony's Greatest Hits and Platinum label the following year in North America and PAL regions respectively. A remastered version of God of War II, alongside with the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_of_War_%28video_game%29 first God of War], was released for the PlayStation 3 in North America in November 2009 and in the PAL regions in April 2010 as part of the God of War Collection, with up-scaled graphics and trophy support. In November 2010, it became available for download from the PlayStation Store. Gameplay Gameplay is very similar to the original God of War. The player controls the character Kratos in a combination of combat (both normal and quick-time), platforming and puzzle game elements. Many of the familiar combination attacks reappear, the game features four times as many boss fights and improved puzzles in comparison to the original. Kratos' main weapons are the Blades of Athena, with other new weapons including the Barbarian Hammer, the Spear of Destiny and periodically, the Blade of Olympus. Although Kratos initially begins the game with Athena's Blades and the magic ability Poseidon's Rage at maximum, these abilities are lost after an encounter with Zeus. There are several relics also available, including the previously acquired Poseidon's Trident, and new additions, the Amulet of the Fates, Golden Fleece and Icarus' Wings. Magic is available via "Typhon's Bane", "Cronos' Rage", "Head of Euryale" and "Atlas Quake". Kratos also acquires a special ability called Rage of the Titans, which replaces Rage of the Gods from the previous installment. Health and Magic upgrades - Gorgon Eyes and Phoenix Feathers respectively - reappear, with six items needed for an upgrade. Rage of the Titans can also be replenished. All three upgrades are found in a chest of corresponding colour (health green; magic blue and Rage yellow) in addition to other chests (red) that provide experience yielding orbs. There are also three special chests that provide an upgrade to Health, Magic bars and experience respectively. Several urns are also hidden in the game and on completion of the Challenge mode will unlock special abilities. The sex mini-game included in the previous installment returns (being an encounter with two hand maidens), a revised challenge mode (seven trials called "Challenge of the Titans") that unlocks the abilities in the urns found during the first playthrough, and the new "Arena of the Fates" which allows players to create their own battles. Plot Kratos is now the God of War, having defeated the Olympian god Ares. Shunned by the other gods and still haunted by nightmares from his past, Kratos decides to join an army of Spartans in an attack on the city of Rhodes. Kratos also ignores a warning from the goddess Athena that his lust for revenge is alienating the other gods. During the battle, a giant eagle drains Kratos of his godly powers and also animates the Colossus of Rhodes. After a series of skirmishes with the statue, Kratos is offered the Blade of Olympus by Zeus- Kratos now only needing to infuse the blade with the remainder of his godly power. Although now human Kratos defeats the Colossus, he is mortally wounded in the attempt. Zeus reveals himself as the eagle, and states he is forced to intervene as Athena refuses to undo what Zeus refers to as "her mistake". Zeus then grants Kratos one final opportunity to be a loyal servant of the gods. Kratos, however, refuses and is killed by Zeus with the Blade of Olympus. Zeus then destroys the invading Spartan army. Although Kratos is slowly dragged to the Underworld, he is saved by the Titan Gaia, Mother of Earth. Gaia explains to Kratos that he must now find the Sisters of Fate, who can change his fate and prevent his death at the hands of Zeus. With the aid of a winged Pegasus, Kratos is first directed to find Gaia's brother Titan Typhon and enlist his aid. After an aerial battle with griffins and harpies, Kratos finds the Titan imprisoned in an arctic location under a mountain. Typhon is angered at the intrusion and imprisons the Pegasus, trapping Kratos in his lair. Forced to explore, Kratos battles hordes of foes until encountering the former Titan Prometheus who was trapped in mortal form and then chained and tortured at Zeus' directive for giving the gift of fire to mankind. Prometheus begs for release from his torment, and to achieve this Kratos then finds and confronts Typhon. Kratos steals the Titan's magical bow and uses it to blind the Titan, with an angered Typhon swearing vengeance. Kratos returns to Prometheus and uses the weapon to free him, who then chooses death by fire. In the act of immolation Prometheus releases the power of the Titans, which Kratos absorbs into himself. Freeing the Pegasus with the Titans' power, Kratos escapes and defeats more aerial foes until finding the Island of Creation. Kratos then learns from Gaia that she once raised a young Zeus, who, on reaching manhood, betrayed her and waged war against all Titans for the cruelty inflicted on his siblings by his father, Cronos. After battling and defeating a number of foes, including Theseus, an undead version of his old foe the Barbarian King, the gorgon Euryale, Perseus, and Icarus (both of whom are also seeking the Sisters of Fate), Kratos encounters the imprisoned Titan Atlas. An angered Atlas initially has no time for Kratos as he was responsible for the Titan's current predicament. Kratos, however, explains his intent, and Atlas reveals that Gaia and the other Titans seek revenge on Zeus as they were punished and humiliated by the gods after their defeat in the Great War. After revealing that the Blade of Olympus is the key to Zeus' defeat, Atlas aids Kratos by helping him reach the Palace of the Fates. After evading numerous traps and defeating waves of monsters, Kratos encounters and battles an unseen foe, who is revealed to be a loyal Spartan soldier. Before dying, the soldier reveals Zeus has completed his revenge by destroying Sparta in Kratos' absence. An outraged Kratos is given even greater power by Gaia, who encourages him to continue to pursue his ultimate goal - the death of Zeus. Kratos eventually finds and frees a phoenix, riding the creature to the Sisters' stronghold. Kratos then confronts two of the three Sisters - Lakhesis and Atropos. After a series of skirmishes (including a failed attempt by the Sisters to change the outcome of Kratos' battle with Ares), Kratos kills both, and then confronts the final Sister, Clotho. After killing Clotho, Kratos uses the Loom of Fate to return to the point at which Zeus betrayed him. Kratos surprises Zeus and seizes the Blade of Olympus, and, after a protracted battle, incapacitates Zeus. Athena intervenes and begs Kratos to stop, stating by killing Zeus, Kratos will destroy Olympus. Kratos ignores Athena's pleas and attempts to kill Zeus, but Athena sacrifices herself and is impaled by the Blade of Olympus. Before dying, Athena reveals Kratos is Zeus' son, and that Zeus was afraid that Kratos would usurp him, as he himself did to Cronos. Kratos declares the time of the gods is at an end, and travels back in time, rescuing the Titans just prior to their defeat in the Great War. Kratos then brings the Titans to the present, where the gods watch as their former foes climb Mount Olympus. Standing on the back of Gaia and wielding the Blade of Olympus, Kratos tells Zeus he has brought the destruction of Olympus. Marketing and Release On March 1, 2007, Sony held a media event - featuring scantily clad women and a dead goat in Athens as part of the game's marketing campaign. In April 2007, the Daily Mail learned of the event from the UK Official PlayStation Magazine and condemned it as a "depraved promotion stunt" with a possible boycott of Sony products as a result. Sony responded by stating the event had been sensationalized based on hyperbole and the article contained several inaccuracies, but also apologized. The game was released in North America on March 13, 2007, in Europe on April 27, 2007, and May 3, 2007 in Australia. The game was later released in Japan on October 25, 2007 by Capcom, under the title God of War II: Shuuen No Jokyoku (ゴッド・オブ・ウォーII 終焉への序曲 Goddo obu Wō Tsū: Shūen e no Jokyoku?). The North American version of God of War II is packaged in a two-disc set: the first disc contains the game, and the second disc is dedicated to the game's development, including a diary of the game's production. The European/Australian PAL version was released as two different editions: a single disc standard edition and a two disc "Special Edition" with different box art and a bonus DVD. Both God of War II and the original God of War, were released in North America on November 17, 2009 for the PlayStation 3 as part of the God of War Collection, featuring remastered ports of both games to PlayStation 3 hardware with up-scaled graphics and support for trophies. The collection was released in Japan on March 18, 2010, Australia on April 29, 2010 and the United Kingdom on April 30, 2010. The "God of War II Bonus Materials" on the second disc of the original two-disc PS2 version is included with the collection, which is available under Video when disc is in PS3 system. The bonus materials, however, are not included in the download version. On November 2, 2010, God of War: Collection - containing both God of War and God of War II - was released as a download on the PlayStation Store, which became the first product containing PS2 material to be available via download. PlayStation Plus subscribers may also download a one hour trial of each game and for a limited time receive a God of War III skin with the purchase of each game: "Phantom of Chaos" for God of War and "Forgotten Warrior" for God of War II. Soundtrack On April 10, 2007, God of War II: Original Soundtrack from the Video Game - composed by Gerard K. Marino, Ron Fish, Mike Reagan and Cris Velasco - was released on CD (66 minutes and 41 seconds in length) by SCEI. Reception On release God of War II received critical and commercial acclaim, regarded as one of the best PlayStation 2 games and action games of all time. In 2007, IGN listed God of War II at number two on the "top 25 PS2 Games of All Time" list - five ahead of its predecessor. In IGN's Best of 2007 Awards, God of War II received the awards for Best PS2 Adventure Game, Best Graphics Technology, Best Original Score, Best Use of Sound, and the PS2 Game of the Year. In North America, the game sold 833,209 copies by the end of March 2007, twice as many copies as the next-best selling game. God of War II attained the highest selling rank in the UK in the first week of release. The game eventually sold over one million copies in the first three months after release. God of War II was re-released in the PAL regions on January 11, 2008 as part of Sony's Platinum range. It was also re-released under the Greatest Hits label on April 6, 2008 in North America. Links *God of War II Review - PlayStation 2 Review at IGN *God of War II PlayStation 2 Review - GameSpot *"The Top 25 PS2 Games of All Time". IGN. *God of War II Official USA Website *God of War II Official European Website *God of War II at Internet Movie Database *[http://www.mobygames.com/game/god-of-war-ii God of War II] at MobyGames Category:2007 video games Category:Most Wanted Games